Mojo Music Festival: A Unique Sonic Fusion in the Canaries
Spain’s festival calendar is dotted with prestigious and fascinating music events, many of which have become almost too successful for their own good amidst a sea of competing options. In this vibrant landscape, one festival celebrating its fifth edition this year stands out by championing a unique blend of traditional sounds and electronic production. This is the Mojo Music Festival (MMF) in Las Palmas, a specialized event dedicated to artists who fit this very profile, and this weekend it will once again prove its worth on a stage overlooking the Atlantic Ocean: the Plaza de la Música.
A Robust Lineup for 2024
Instituto Mexicano del Sonido, Natalia Deco, Dengue Dengue Dengue, and Cosmic Wacho are the headline acts gracing the Mojo stage this Friday and Saturday. While the festival’s heart lies in its signature fusion, it also opens its doors to other rock-influenced, yet decidedly non-commercial, pentagrams. This includes what music critic Diego Hernández calls the “swampy blues” of the band Guadalupe Plata from Úbeda, the poetic lyricism of Barcelona’s Delafé & Las Flores Azules—whose melodies are varnished with indie, pop, hip hop, rock, soul, and electronica—and emerging sounds from acts like Madrid’s Toldos Verdes.
The Curator’s Vision
The musical director behind Mojo is Mario Alonso, a dedicated music lover and researcher of alternative sounds. His primary rule for curating the lineup is simple yet effective: “Besides respecting the philosophy upon which the festival was founded, I choose musicians I have seen perform live.” This hands-on approach ensures an authentic and powerful experience for attendees.
From Club to Festival: The Mojo Legacy
The origins of the MMF are deeply rooted in the Mojo Club, a venue that sadly closed in 2017 after a successful ten-year run when its concession in the public space—the very same Plaza de la Música that now hosts the festival—expired. There, Alonso, a journalist by trade, would spin the music he discovered off the commercial radar and revel in the performances of national and international alternative bands and solo artists. Now, the event has been solidly re-established with the support of the Las Palmas city council and the Island Council (Cabildo).
Spotlight on the Headliners
After a hiatus in 2024, Mojo returns with a robust lineup featuring names firmly established on the international scene. This includes Instituto Mexicano del Sonido, the project led by the multifaceted Camilo Lara, whom Alonso describes as “one of the most influential authors in Mexico City’s culture, who mixes electronics with traditional music.”
Argentinian artist Natalia Deco, now based in Paris, performs on Friday. “She is a sure bet, with a legion of thousands of followers, as she demonstrated during her first performance in the Canaries a few months ago at Fuerteventura Música,” says Alonso, noting how audiences are seduced by the composer’s personal blend of spirituality and anthropology.
That same day, the stage will also host Cosmic Wacho and Dengue Dengue Dengue. Both duos use tradition as their starting point, fuse it with electronics, and create music that feels intrinsically linked to the soundtrack of the 21st century. Cosmic Wacho, based on the Costa del Sol and comprised of one musician from Málaga and another from Argentina, rescue cumbia to mix it with electronica and other suggestive sounds. Dengue Dengue Dengue are two Peruvian composers based in Berlin, known for always performing in masks.
An Eclectic Musical Journey
As mentioned, Mojo is not exclusively limited to its core folk-electronica pattern. The festival boasts an eclectic component with, as the artistic director explains, “the contribution of the rock-blues of Guadalupe Plata, with its flamenco influences, or sounds more typical of indie like Delafé, the Lanzarote-based band Yo no te quiero, and the Gran Canaria composer Silde.”
Closing the Festival with a Local Hero
Woodhands is the brand identity of DJ and producer Carlos Fernández from Las Palmas. He will be tasked with closing the MMF on Saturday night following the performance by Instituto Mexicano del Sonido. A resident of many DJ booths, the Canarian musician is well-known in Spanish venues and festivals like Sonar or Music & Dealers and has performed multiple times in London.
Filling the Breaks with Club Legends
Across the two main days of the event, plus a free opening party on Thursday night, three DJs who were regulars at the legendary Mojo Club will cover the intervals between live acts: Fuckin Four Factory, Baked Belda, and Yeray Pacheco. Their sets promise to keep the energy high and the Atlantic breeze filled with music until the very end.
